title: Cloning of a retinally abundant regulator of G-protein signaling (RGS-r/RGS16): genomic structure and chromosomal localization of the human gene.
abstract: Regulators of G-protein signaling (RGS) constitute a family of GTPase-activating proteins with varying tissue-specific expression patterns and G-protein alpha subunit specificities. Here, we describe the molecular cloning of the human RGS-r/RGS16 cDNA, encoding a predicted polypeptide of 23kDa that shows 86% identity to mouse RGS-r. Northern blot analysis shows that, like the mouse Rgs-r message, hRGS-r mRNA is abundantly expressed in retina, with lower levels of expression in most other tissues examined. Characterization of the genomic organization of the hRGS-r gene shows that it consists of five exons and four introns. We have also mapped the human RGS-r /RGS16 gene to chromosome 1q25-1q31 by fluorescence in situ hybridzation. Analysis of human ESTs reveals that at least five members of the RGS gene family map to chromosome 1q, suggesting that at least part of the RGS family arose through gene duplication. The chromosomal location, retinal abundance, and presumed function of the human RGS-r protein in desensitizing photoreceptor signaling make the RGS-r/RGS16 locus a candidate for mutations responsible for retinitis pigmentosa with para-arteriolar preservation of retinal pigment epithelium (RP-PPRE or RP12), an autosomal recessive disorder previously mapped to 1q31.
authors.affiliation: Quantitative Biology Laboratory, Amgen Institute, 620 University Avenue, M5G 2C1, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: B E
authors.initials: BE
authors.lastname: Snow
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Antonio
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Suggs
authors.forename: D P
authors.initials: DP
authors.lastname: Siderovski
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D015152:Blotting, Northern; D002874:Chromosome Mapping; D002878:Chromosomes, Human, Pair 1; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D018076:DNA, Complementary / Q000302:isolation & purification; D005136:Eye Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D017404:In Situ Hybridization, Fluorescence; D051379:Mice; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D011506:Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology*; D020710:RGS Proteins; D012160:Retina / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism*; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D018076:DNA, Complementary; D005136:Eye Proteins; D011506:Proteins; D020710:RGS Proteins; C107413:RGS16 protein